A Chiropodist Regrets . . .
I have measured out my life with feet --
distorted feet -- the daily stock in trade
for me, obscure chiropodist from Lechlade;
ill-favoured feet, some racked by malformation
and every type of fungal infestation.
Hard-wired that Nine-to-Five was Life's intention
I sold my dreams for safety and a pension;
while other men blazed journeys to the moon,
supped with the Devil with too short a spoon,
made and lost huge fortunes in a trice
on horses, cards, roulette and loaded dice,
played vast arenas with their four-chord bands,
lay with silk-skinned whores in far-off lands,
or held the fate of nations in their hands.
Excitement is a risky choice to make.
Not making it has been my worst mistake.
(first published in The Spectator)